1.  In I.ii, Prospero tells Miranda who she is (or, as she puts it, "what I am" (34).  What role does she play in her father's life?  To what extent is her character defined by the words after her name in the list of dramatis personae--i.e. "daughter to Prospero"?  Analyze the text, considering the various kinds of language Prospero uses in addressing her and/or describing her.

2.  When Prospero explains how they came to the island, we hear something of a "prequel" to the play.  Analyzing the language of his speeches in I.ii., explore the nature of Prospero's power, past and present.  What kind of Duke was he?  How were/are his dukedom and his magic "art" related?  Concentrate in particular on the meaning of lines 24-32 and 107-116.

3. In I.ii, Caliban curses Prospero and regrets the welcome he intitially gave him; but by II.ii, he has enslaved himself to a new master (the drunken butler, Stephano); comparing the language he uses in I.ii to that he employs in II.ii, explain the nature and state of Caliban's character.

4.  Compare Prospero's treatment of Caliban with the treatment Ariel receives from Sycorax, Caliban's mother.  Explore the paralles and contrasts between Prospero and Sycorax, Ariel and Caliban.

5.  I.ii (and the play as a whole) features father/child relationships quite prominently.  In light of this theme, what is the effect of Caliban's remark at I.ii.350-351?  He says that, if he had succeeded in his intent "to violate / The honor of" Miranda (347-48), he would have "peopled . . . / This isle with Calibans"; does this line link him to or separate him from other father-figures in the play?

6.  Why does Prospero do what he does to Ferdinand in I.ii?  Think in specific terms, analyzing in particular P's words at 452-459 and 484-486; seek to find the complexities in his motivation, rather than giving the simplest explanation.

7.  Ariel's song in I.ii and Caliban's at the end of II.ii are both about change, but they are clearly very different lyrics.  Consider the reason/motive each has for singing, the audience or listener (real or imagined) to whom each song is addressed, the nautre of the imagery, the tone, and the kind of change described.  In light of all these parallels and contrasts, what bearing do the two songs have on the play's thematic development?

8.  The question of Caliban's being taught to speak comes up both in I.ii and in II.ii; comparing the references to this subject in the two scenes, explain the importance of verbal language/speech in establishing relationships and/or identities in the play.

9.  There's a strong stress on liquor and drunkenness in II.ii.  In line 135 ("kiss the book") Stephano plays on the idea that one would swear on the Bible by kissing it; he considers it just as valid a sign of one's oath to "kiss" (i.e., take a swig from) a bottle.  Compare Prospero's attitudes toward his books with Stephano's towards his liquor.  What is the thematic significance of the parallel?

10.  What reasons might Prospero have to keep checking, throughout his speeches to his daughter in I.ii, whether or not Miranda is paying attention to him?  (Consider various ways one might stage the scene).

11.  How does Caliban's behavior in III.ii affect the audience's conception of him?  Are his tactics justified?  Are they wise?  What would the members of the African Company say?

12.  In Act IV, Prospero presents Miranda and Ferdinand with a play within a play; this performance is a "masque" of the sort that was performed at the court of King James.  How does the function of The Tempest compare with the function of Prospero's masque?

13.  The masque's pagentry vanishes when Prospero is jarred back into the real-life consciousness that he must deal with Caliban's conspiracy.  What do you make of this moment?  How does it comment on the relationship between art (or, at any rate, Prospero's art) and revolution?

14.  Prospero's speech at V.i.33f. is based on a speech of Medea in Ovid's Metamorphoses (see Signet, p. 139).  How does the allusion to Medea affect the response of an audience member aware of the allusion?

15.  How does the outcome of the play for the European "bad guys" and for Prospero compare with the outcome for Caliban?